It makes a great all-around GPS for first-time users and for anyone who
wants a very portable solution.

It's not waterproof and remote speakers can not be attached.

The screen gets washed out in daylight. It weighs 6-3/4 oz. (193 grams).

Introduction

This is not a motorcycle GPS!

Now that may be obvious to you, but it wasn't to me, a complete rookie
when it comes to mobile GPS (Global Positioning System) units.

But I'm also a Myers-Briggs ISTJ, so when I decided that it was time
to learn about GPS, I rolled up my sleeves and immersed myself in the facts,
the trivia and as much of the details as I could absorb before I made my
purchasing decision.

In the end, I chose a great GPS unit, but it isn't really designed for
motorcycle use, as I discovered.

But that's OK -- we're here to make the mistakes so you don't. So bear
with me while I tell the tale, and hopefully you'll pick up a tip or two
along the way.

BackgroundI now realize that although I'm definitely interested in a GPS unit
that can help me get from Point A to Point B without getting lost, what
I'd really like to have is a "reverse GPS".

I'd like to have a system that will record my motorcycle wanderings that
I can play back at a later date to see where I've been so that I can get
back there again the next time.

I absolutely love to just take off on my bike on a journey of discovery,
turning this way and that, exploring new roads and new vistas.

The problem is that when I find a great new curvy road, or a beautiful
view, I can't always find my way back there. I had a rough idea of how GPS
worked, and I thought it could help me, but I really didn't understand what
GPS was all about until I took the plunge and brought one home.

Sure, I read the GPS reviews, but they seemed to go from one extreme
to another -- they were either too full of arcane details and techno-babble
or they were simply a cut and paste from the manufacturer's press release.

I picked up enough knowledge though to learn the basics, even though
no single GPS really seemed to stand out as a solution for me.

In the end, I decided that perhaps I should not spend the $1,000.00 or
more on a high-end, sophisticated system as my first GPS. All I wanted was
a color screen, portability and built-in maps of the entire U.S.A.

I also wanted a speaker, an earphone jack and a waterproof GPS. The Garmin
i5 has 4 out of these 6 requirements.

Garmin i5 Startup and Navigation

The Garmin i5 is claimed to be "the lowest priced car navigator
with pre-loaded maps on today's market". This was a strong selling
point for me.

Since I frequently travel around the U.S.A., I definitely wanted a unit
with built-in maps, so that I didn't have to worry about downloading the
correct maps onto a memory card and the possibility of not having the correct
maps or forgetting the map CD-ROM.

The Garmin i5 comes with the same maps as the Big Boys; the NAVTEQ City
Navigator North America. The i5 uses the "NT" version of the maps,
which means that it has a different compression algorithm, but otherwise
it's supposed to be the same.

The maps include full coverage of the U.S.A., Canada, and Puerto Rico.
The i5 also includes nearly six million "Points of Interest" (POI),
like gas stations, ATMs, hotels, restaurants, and other attractions.

There's no messing around with map downloads to the i5; everything's
loaded and ready to go right out of the box. In fact, after becoming totally
confused from reading a zillion different opinions on GPS units, I was absolutely
amazed at how quickly I was up and running with the i5.

I came out of the store, opened the box, turned it on and it was ready
to go.

I didn't even unpack the instruction manual until the next day, which
is very unusual for me (an ISTJ surely would prefer to read the entire manual
from cover to cover to make sure everything was understood first!).

I've seen some astoundingly bad computer interfaces in my time, and I
can tell you that the Garmin i5 is positively a sublime revelation, it's
that easy to use.

Mercedes, BMW and Microsoft interface designers aren't even at the level
of the Grasshopper when compared to the Enlightened Zen Masters of the Garmin
engineers.

I have handed the i5 over to complete computer illiterates, old timers
and kids and they're up and running with about 10 seconds of instruction.
All they need to know is which button to press to make a selection.

After turning the unit on (the button on the right in the photo above),
every possible choice is controlled by only two buttons. The wheel in the
middle rotates and has indents to give it feel.

Rotate the wheel to see the choices and press it to make a selection.
Press the arrow button to the left of the wheel to go back. That's all there
is to it!

After starting the Garmin i5, an initial "i5" information screen
displays for a few seconds. Next comes a screen warning the user not to
mess with the system while driving.

Press the wheel once and the screen shown in the photo above will display
and it's ready to go. The next choices are obvious: select "Where To?"
to navigate to an address, a point of interest (food, hotels, fuel, etc.),
an intersection or a city, as illustrated in this photo:

Once an address, a restaurant, an intersection or other point of interest
is selected, it can be saved with one click in the "My Favorites"
section.

Once a favorite is saved, it can be selected as a "Where To?"
destination from anywhere in the U.S.A. and the i5 will provide directions.

Each menu choice has the option to spell out the name. This is accomplished
by rotating the wheel to highlight each letter or number and then pressing
the wheel to select it.

As each letter is selected, the i5 searches its database and brings up
potential choices.

For example, in the photo below, as the letters "MONTG" are
typed in, the i5 will start displaying street names, first starting with "M"
as the "M" is selected, then "MO" as the "O"
is selected, then "MON", etc.

As far as I can tell, it will display every street in the U.S.A. that
starts with those letters, but they are quickly narrowed down to the correct
street.

You can see in the photo below that I have so far selected the letters "MONTG".
Montgomery Village Ave., the street I was searching for, is listed fifth.

All I need to do at this point is to press the back arrow button and
scroll down to Montgomery Village Ave. to select it (Note that prior to
getting to this screen, I have already entered the state (I selected "Maryland")
and the street number ("100") in two screens prior to this).

Once the state, the street number and street is selected (or the intersection,
or city, or POI, etc.), the i5 will display the destination.

The phone number is also displayed for a restaurant, gas station or other
POI, which is handy in case the user would like to call first to place an
order, find out what time the store is open, etc.

At this point, there are three options, as shown in the photo below: "Start
Navigating", "Show Map" or "Save as Favorite".
Click "Start Navigating" and the i5 will calculate a route and
display the map.

The route calculations are very quick; local routes of, say, 50 miles
or so are calculated within several seconds. A coast-to-coast route of around
2,500 miles takes about 10 seconds. The directions can also be shown in
turn-by-turn text form.

The i5 will recalculate the route almost instantaneously if a wrong turn
is taken.

The bottom line is that although I have nothing else to compare it to,
apparently there are complaints about slow GPS routing and recalculation
times on some brands and models.

I can report that the i5's calculating speed seems extremely fast to
me and I have no complaints.

A cool feature is the ability to simulate the route once it's selected.

The i5 will step through the entire route, turn by turn, instruction
by instruction. I'm not sure how useful this is other than perhaps to familiarize
the user with the route, but it's fun to watch.

The Garmin i5 maps can be displayed as "3D", "Track Up"
or "North Up". The i5 defaults to the 3D map; the Track Up will
orient the map so that the route being traveled is always pointing towards
the top of the screen.

North Up orients the map so that north is always at the top of the screen.

The wheel can be used to zoom in and out, as shown in the photo below.
The map display can go from a view of just about the entire U.S.A. down
to maybe about 1/2 mile resolution.

Keeping it at about the fifth "notch" leaves enough resolution
to see the street names go by on the left and right, which helps to keep
the user oriented when driving.

Routing

The routing instructions can also be displayed in text format, two turns
to a screen. The "miles to go until next turn" and estimated time
of arrival are also displayed (as they are in the map view), and the voice
instructions are also active in text mode.

The screen will scroll through the routing instructions during the ride.

That's about all there is to it. Here's something I learned: the Garmin
i5 will probably get you to your destination, but it will use the most common
route to get there.

There is a choice for "Shorter Distance" or "Faster Time"
in the settings, but they both seem biased towards Interstate highways and
main roads.

This is not a device that will lead you through the interesting back
roads, even though you may know a back road short cut with lots of scenery.

A wrong turn will generate an immediate recalculation, but the unit will
almost always try to route the user around the block to get back to the
original routing.

Settings

The Garmin i5 has a variety of settings that can be adjusted, including
volume and screen brightness (a problem see below). The other choices include:

Map

Detail (Most, More, Normal,
Less, Least)

View (Track Up, North Up,
3D)

Source (built in or additional
map on SD memory. This is not necessary but may be desired to
hold additional POI or maps of other countries.

Go to that page to download the Garmin "WebUpdater", which
allows the i5 to automatically connect via a USB cable to the Garmin site
to download the latest firmware. I discovered that even though my i5 was
brand new, a firmware version was available (version 2.7).

That page also has links to the Garmin POI loader, which allows the owner
to load custom Points of Interest onto optional portable memory in the i5.
A link to the i5 USB driver is also provided, but shouldn't be needed for
a new unit.

By the way, It's my understanding that some websites are now available
that contain free downloads of speed camera POIs, which may or may not be
useful, depending upon your driving habits!

Other Features

The i5 can be powered by two AA batteries. This is a rare feature for
a GPS and a real plus. Fresh batteries last about 4-5 hours. Garmin does
not include batteries in the box, which is strange.

The i5 comes with an automotive style power adapter (cigarette lighter
type) on a 6 ft. (183 cm) cord.

The i5 includes a ball mounted suction cup adapter which works well on
flat, smooth surfaces. It is designed for use on glass windshields. A lever
on the suction cup removes the air and makes it stick very tightly.

The i5 also has a receptacle for an external antenna (not included).
But the unit seems to have a very good ability to pick up the GPS satellites,
even when the device is partly hidden under a fairing or dashboard.

There is no provision for an external speaker or earphone, so the navigation
is limited to visual only when the i5 is used on a motorcycle.

Notes

UPDATE: "I am here" Location Marking: I originally thought
that the i5 would not allow the user to mark a location; that is, I thought
that I could not save a location in memory or My Favorites without first
having navigated to it.

However, wBWvisitor and Garmin i3 owner (the i3 is very similar to the i5, except
that it uses downloaded maps into portable memory) "B.B." wrote
us with an undocumented tip (that I will paraphrase for the i5):

The current location can indeed be marked. First navigate to the map
of the current location. Press and hold the wheel button for a couple of
seconds while the map is displayed.

The i5 then gives the current location a default name, such as "001", "002",
etc. You then have the option of naming the location.

B.B. says that this is a "pretty handy feature, especially when
you find a location that is too new to be in the POI database and want to
be able to easily navigate back to it sometime in the future".

Here are a few more observations after spending more time with the Garmin
StreetPilot i5:

Route Start Instructions

The i5 doesn't always seem to start the routing from the user's exact
current location. For example, if the user is located in a parking lot or
if a series of short turns are required to navigate out to the main starting
point, the i5 doesn't provide voice directions until the main road is reached
or shortly thereafter.

This can be a problem when there are multiple route choices facing the
rider immediately at the start of the route. Twice so far I haven't been
able to figure out which way to turn to start the route, so I simply guessed
and waited for the i5 to turn me around.

Unfortunately, the "no U-turns" box was checked in the settings,
so it took me way out of my way to get back to where I needed to go.

"Via" Routing

When entering a new "Where To?" address, the i5 will ask the
user if the address should be set as a "Via Point". This allows
a one-instance "waypoint" to be set, so that, for example, the
user could travel to Atlanta via Greensboro.

Only one via point can be set, but another one can be set after the first
one has been reached.

This function is inconsistent, at least on our unit. At first we though
that only a direct street address can be used as a via point and not a selected
POI, like a restaurant or gas station.

But we discovered that our unit will sometimes ask us if we want to enter
a POI as a via point and sometimes it doesn't. Seems strange -- we'll report
back on this if we learn more.

Mounting

Now that the weather has turned colder, it seems like the suction cup
mounting system that worked so well is prone to failure if the temperature
falls during the ride. This happened twice on the bike and more than once
in the car.

There is no alternative mounting system for the i5, but I'm sure a home-made
solution could be designed.

Lockup!

The i5 locked up for the first time today. It seemed to have trouble
locating the satellites, and about 4 miles into a new route, the screen
froze. I pulled the plug and the batteries for about 15 seconds and plugged
it back in.

I left it at the "Where To?" screen and somehow it picked up
the route again and knew where it was and successfully routed me to the
intended location.

The Garmin i5 is very easy to set up and use. I've learned that it's
not designed for motorcycle use, which is too bad, because it's nice and
small and light weight at only 6-3/4 oz. (193 grams).

I'd say that the i5 gets the award for the fastest "out of the box"
up-and-running time of any electronic device I've ever owned. I've learned
a lot about using GPS and I'll probably use the i5 in the car only.

But now that I know more about the technology and how it works, I'll
investigate other GPS systems designed for motorcycle use and we'll report
back in upcoming webBikeWorld articles.

Comments are ordered from most recent to oldest.
Not all comments will be published (details).
Comments may be edited for clarity prior to publication.

From "J.N.": "I saw in your review someone
wrote in wondering why the distances listed were too short.

The reason is because it's an "as the bird flies" distance
from where you are to the favorite point.

The road distance is, of course, longer. I see that this product is discontinued,
but I'm sure this is true of more GPS units."

From "J.W.": "Great review thanks a million.
I just got mine and am loving it. I noticed something though that a I have
been wondering about. When viewing "favorites" the mileage to
destination is always way too low.

Sometimes after the route is calculated the first "leg" of
the ride is more than the whole reported mileage on the favorites page.
In other words the route calculation comes up with the right mileage but
the initially displayed mileage is much too low.

Is this point to point mileage or something? Has anyone else noticed
this?"

Editor's Note: I haven't noticed this problem but I haven't
really been looking at the mileage numbers. I'll check ours to see.

Mike Cecchini,a fellow member from the
Mid-Atlantic Ducati
Owners' Club, recently went on a quest for a GPS. I thought his research
would be of interest to webBikeWorld visitors, so with Mike's permission,
I'm reprinting it here:

Well this have been one hell-of-a GPS fact finding marathon for the past
two weeks. Gotta love the 'net and the amount of information, reviews, sales,
auctions and down-right bargains out there on GPS's.

In typical fashion, I set out on this with reasonable expectations and
equally reasonable (I thought) budget of $500.

Since GPS's have been around for a while, I figured good deals could
be had on new, nearly new units. I was right. 50% off list (or more) is
easy if you really do your on-line homework.

As someone pointed out and rightly so, my $500 was right in no-man's
land when it came to a GPS purchase.

It's too much for the base units and not enough for the really good units.
But as you will see, I managed to find that zone where high/low model and
price compromise finally came together for me.

So, with "only" 10--20 hrs of on-line searching and reading
I quickly came to realize that Garmin is the industry leader and rightly
so with all the horror stories I've read about the wanna-bee's and also-ran's
that confuse the issues.

This search ended up with the classic comparo of the low-end bargains
that serve the bare need vs. the high-end units that have way too many bells
'n whistles, but as usual, there's usually something that I really really
think is a great idea.

So I typically stretched my $500 budget to get this much appreciated
option.

So without further ado, here's where I ended-up and why:

Garmin i5: List: $360, EBay & Outlets circa $275 (new in box
w/ everything). I'm convinced that this is more than enough for 90% of us
that want a good waterproof unit that can be moved from car to car to bike,
not to mention it is self contained (internal battery powered) and normal
12v vehicle powered.

If the Garmin 2730 didn't exist, I would have chosen this unit as all
of the reviews from owners and mags say this is just a great simple unit
that does it all for car or bike.

Garmin StreetPilot 2730: List $1200, Ebay & Outlets circa
$600--$650 (new in box w/everything). This is a recently discontinued by
Garmin model, but still available on-line by many on-line stores.

So real bargains can be had, but what really got my attention is that
this unit will play through your vehicle's FM radio, so it can be heard/understood
under any circumstance.

I like this feature a lot and it is not offered on any other Garmin model,
no matter how high you go, so this raised my $500 limit by $120, but I'm
very happy with my decision and got one off Ebay brand new in sealed box
with all the accessories for $620.

As a 100% newbie to all this, I unpacked it and began with step 1 to
go through the set-up steps.

I quickly came to a halt with an instruction that just didn't work, so
I called the Garmin hot-line and got put on hold immediately but I was determined
to hang-on and out-wait them.

These are the times where my desk speaker phone pays for itself as I
happily work on something else as the answering machine recordings repeat
themselves.

Sure enough, within 20 minutes an extremely helpful lady came on to talk
me through each step like butta.

In 10 mins we got everything working and we even did a free upgrade to
the latest software. Then she steered me to a site where I could get the
latest North America street map CD (vs 8)... free ($130 value).

Happy as a clam, I played with it for a while inside (120v to 12 v adaptor
that came with it) then went out to the van and set the unit on my dash
(kind of a low profile bean bag mount that really works well).

I tuned the radio to a unused FM2 frequency and punched that frequency
into the GPS.

Presto bingo !! I now have 100 watts of easy to hear soft voice commands
(pick from 20+ male/female languages) from 8 speakers instead of over-driven
1/2 watt from a one inch speaker at the cigarette lighter plug.

Sweet. So far everything works as described and I'm still working my
way around all the buttons 'n bells.

Averatec Voya 350: List $400, Ebay & Outlets circa $300. I
tossed this fully featured unit into this issue as someone mentioned it,
so with his recommendation I went off to see what this new-comer was offering
to get into the very popular GPS market.

I looked at it's spec's and features and it certainly looked promising,
especially at its remarkably low price. Maybe I found something special
here, so I dug deeper.

I searched and searched and finally found it at Circuit City, so I called
the Rockville store to see if they had one on the shelf.

"I've never heard of that unit sir" is what I got from all
three of my local Circuit City stores, so I went back on-line to call the
800# given by Circuit City gave to order it.

"That unit is only offered on-line sir".

Hmm, not the warm and fuzzy feeling I was looking for, so I dug deeper
and went to the Averatec site to click and click only to come up with endless "Page
cannot be displayed" time after time.

Then I called the customer service 800# and got "that # is no longer
working".

Needless to say that this was the nail in the Averatec coffin and why
CirCity is even offering it at all still confuses me. I guess it's just
a blow-out item that they are trying to get some of their money back. Go
figure.

MC's bottom line: if want a great basic GPS, you can't go wrong with
the $275 Garmin i5. If you are into programs, bells 'n whistles there's
a whole range of $600--$1500 Garmins and Magellans out there that will do
just about anything imaginable for you on the road."

From "J.W.": "Hi from the UK! Just
came across your article regarding the Garmin StreetPilot and its use on
a bike. I looked long and hard here in the UK for a small but portable GPS.

I couldn't believe my eyes when the Garmin StreetPilot came it, it's
perfect for using on a motorcycle. Like yourselves I use the GPS attached
to the tacho on my Triumph by use of the suction cup. It works absolutely
fine.

What I have done in addition is that I have modified the unit by undoing
the case and soldering speaker wires to the existing speaker.

Then CAREFULLY (!) drilling a small hole in the case and feeding the
cable (which has a jack-plug) through the case; putting the case back together.

It works absolutely perfectly; give it a try, it only takes a few minutes
to do the conversion, the screws in the Garmin unit are easy to get to (one
in each corner). (Editor's Note: Remember that this will void your
warranty.)

My only problem now is to try and track down a manufacturer who is prepared
or makes a soft plastic case to put the unit into.

To date no manufacturer appears to see the huge potential market out
there because everyone I know who has a bike is going for this small, brilliant
piece of equipment. Perhaps you can persuade someone to make and sell something.

If you do please let me know immediately!"

From "G.D.": "Bought it 4 days ago... (paragraph
cut, edited for brevity)... (the webBikeWorld review) stated there was no
charging status for both the TomTom unit and the Bluetooth headset - both
statements are false.

The unit I have with version 5.420 software clearly indicates the charging
status and battery level on the Status Summary screen (with or without a
route planned).

Additionally as the battery level runs down to about 1/3 to 1/4 it constantly
flashes on the main screen.

Also the headset displays a red LED while charging. Finally the power
switch: just push it in, as the rubber moves you'll feel a slight click.

Don't use a finger nail or anything sharp. If you have it connected to
your bike correctly (switched DC) you'll never turn in on or off by the
switch anyway. It automatically turns on when you start and off when you
turn off the bike or remove it from the DC cradle.

So why was your reviewer so concerned with the power switch since its
never needed?

Did he even install the unit on a bike? Additionally, your reviewer completely
glossed over the Bluetooth connections and web information (weather, traffic
and emails).

Because of the Bluetooth connection you don't have to look down at the
unit while riding and you can hear the instructions at speed like having
a real intercom system without all the wires.

Because it connects to your Bluetooth cell phone you can easily call
any POI and make reservations while under way.

With the ease of making and receiving calls with the TomTom Rider and
a Bluetooth headset it very easy to use your cell phone as an intercom system
between riders and cycles.

All concepts that completely escaped your reviewer. It appears based
on your reviewers words and preference for a Garmin he thinks all a GPS
is is a glorified electronic map. He really missed the boat...."

Editor's Reply: As we mentioned in the review, our example
was a very early production version, so perhaps some features have been
changed after the initial manufacturing run.

Ours does NOT have a charging indicator that is visible on either the
ear piece or the TomTom unit when it is being recharged.

Other TomTom Rider units that we used since then also did not have a
charging indicator on the Bluetooth headset or on the screen during normal
(map) viewing.

We have tried several units and had problems with the on/off switch on
all of them. It's completely unacceptable on ours and can barely be turned
on or off. It's a very frustrating experience.

Our feeling is that the primary purpose of a GPS is for directions and
mapping and not for making calls, listening to music or downloading email.

Our feeling is that talking on the phone whilst riding a motorcycle (or
car) is dangerous and we don't recommend it, thus we didn't try this feature,
although we do now have a cell phone that has the capability of connecting
to the unit.

We compared the TomTom to the Garmin i5 and a built-in unit in a 2006
Ford Explorer that we use as a tow vehicle. We reviewed only the mapping
features of a GPS system, which is the primary purpose of the device.

We're not big fans of using GPS on a motorcycle anyway and find it too
distracting. Thanks again for sending your comments!"

From "H.P.": "I'm not a biker but I would like
to thank Bill C. and webBikeWorld for the excellent review of the Garmin
StreetPilot i5 published on the Web.

Looking for information on GPS devices for automobiles, I searched the
Web for a review of Garmin StreetPilots and found your article.

The point of view of the article is perfect for a beginner who doesn't
know anything about what to expect from these devices, how to operate them
or what comparative levels of quality the i5 has.

It is also spectacularly well thought out, well written and illustrated
and contains its own hallmarks of credibility.

Without further searching, I know the i5 is one that would work well
for my needs. I wish this article could be a universal model for user oriented
equipment reviews."

From "B.M.": "Just read your review of the
Garmin GPS unit. I'll second the other reader comment about the 2610.

I'm very happy with mine. (Oh, yeah: the 2610 will store your track as
you ride and allow you to upload it to a PC to help you figure out where
you've been.) But that's not really why I'm writing.

I'd like to point out another feature or capability that I consider essential
for a motorcycle GPS.

When I'm routing for my car, I probably want the fastest route, which
all of the auto-routing GPS units from Garmin and others will do.

But when I'm routing for the motorcycle, I am more likely to be looking
for the most entertaining route, which is something no GPS I've seen is
capable of doing.

The Garmin units will sometimes generate interesting routes if you choose
the "shortest distance" option (which may not exist on the little
i5), but sometimes this just chooses traffic choked main arteries.

If I really want to create an entertaining route, there's no real choice
but to build the route manually, by seeking out twisty roads and inserting
way-points to force the GPSR to follow the roads you want.

And to do that, you really want a GPSR that will let you create routes
on a PC and download them.

Creating waypoints and manually building routes is at least an order
of magnitude easier with the large screen, keyboard, and mouse of a PC than
it is on the small screen and limited interface of a GPSR itself.

For this reason, I won't even consider any GPS that doesn't come, or
at least offer, the ability to use a program like MapSource in a PC."

Editor's Response: As we mentioned, the i5 will get you where
you want to go, but the route may not be the shortest, prettiest or even
the one you'd pick from a map.

Comparing the 2610 to the i5 is an apples vs. oranges thing.

Many new and experienced GPS owners don't want to mess with a computer,
mapping software and downloads. The i5 is a very good basic GPS that will
get you from here to there with a minimum of fuss.

It can be stored in a tank bag or glove box and it's ready to direct
the owner anywhere in the U.S.A. within seconds.

From "T.M.": "As an ISTP to an ISTJ, here
we go. In the past 10 years, I've owned a lot of Garmin products as well
as gps receivers for use with real-time computer mapping, mostly DeLorme
stuff on Mac and PeeCee laptops.

The laptop stuff is tough to use even in the car and I gave up on buying
new versions of the DeLorme products 4 or 5 years ago, but the voice controlled
versions were a lot of fun, especially the "Where am I?" and "Are
we there yet?" commands.

But I admit I often followed up the where am I question with "Why
am I here?" and I never did get anything but silence when I asked that.
HA!

When I bought a VStrom 650 last May, I decided against moving the Street
Pilot 3 from the car to the bike and bought a Garmin C-330, which blew me
away with the speed of route re-calculation when I decided, or was forced,
to take a route diversion.

This unit isn't waterproof, but I figured I'd just plastic bag it if
the weather got wet.

The other problem with it is the lack of a motorcycle mount, so ultimately
I retired the Street Pilot 3, moved the C-330 to the car and bought a Quest
2 for the bike.

BIG MISTAKE! The Quest 2 is brutally slow like the older models
at calculating and recalculating routes -- not at all acceptable when you're
forced to reroute in heavy traffic.

So I spent a long time reading on
gpsinformation.net
which has gloriously detailed reviews and is a site that's been around for
a very long time. I used it when I bought my first Garmin 12XL in 1995 or
so.

My final decision was a Garmin 2610 with motorcycle mount and I love
it.

It has all of the nitty gritty details of the Street Pilot 3, like the
ability to mark waypoints, the wicked fast speed of the C-330, and you can
dump the entire country on a Sandisk Ultra II compact flash card, the same
fast ones I use for audio recording.

BTW, I love your website, except for the animated front/back type pictures
you often use. I see the point, but they're distracting me from the text
content and I'd like it better if you could time out the animation.

Of course, I do have a habit of using post-it notes to block stiff like
this. ;-)"

Editor's Response: I have read that the Quest 2 recalculating
time is very slow. If it wasn't for that, I probably would have chosen it
instead of the i5.

I don't have much to compare it to, but the i5 seems incredibly fast
to me - it locates satellites usually before I'm even ready to tell it where
to go, and if I make a wrong turn it recalculates almost instantly, probably
in less than 5 seconds.

Regarding the animated photos in the reviews, thanks for the feedback.
We tried using JavaScript to do something similar, but many visitors didn't
like that solution.

The photos are animated .gifs, the simplest way to do this.

The only reason )for the animation) is to save precious space on the
review page. I'll see if I can figure out something else - I think I can
make the .gifs so that they loop a certain number of times and maybe the
visitor can click to start it again.

By the way, we're waiting for the TomTom Rider to come out "any
day now", a GPS that's supposed to be specifically designed for motorcycles.....we'll
have a review as soon as we can.